2025 Evian Padel Open provides thrilling final match-ups

The Union Padel Club hosted the 2025 Evian Padel Open was held at the Padel Malta in Pembroke last month.

The tournament attracted some of the best players on the island as well as a number of foreign participants with the group stages held over the weekend of April 5 and 6 and followed by the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final between April 12 and 13.

The tournament, which was sanctioned by the Malta Tennis and Padel Federation, attracted a good crowd for the tournament finals, a clear testament of the growth popularity of the sport in Malta.

The men’s tournament turned out to be a real thriller between Spanish player Oier Zuazua and Matthew Asciak up against Santi Antonaya Labrador and Elian Abdalla.

Zuazua and Asciak edged a tight first set 7-5 but Labrador and Abdalla fought back and managed to force a decider when winning the second set 7-6.

But Zuazua and Asciak kept their composure and managed to go on and win the third set 7-5.

The Male B tournament was also a tight story, with Swedish/Spanish team formed by Wijkmark and Sanchis going from strength to strength, to overcome the challenge of Stivala/Elfstedt in the final.

The women’s tournament saw Maltese tennis champion Elaine Genovese teaming up with Ivana Katavic and this duo had smooth march towards the final.

Genovese and Katavic set up a showdown against Ivana Kubickova and the former professional player Maria Vera Mencias.

Genovese/Katavic playing a very impressive padel and won the final 6-2, 6-2.

Malta Tennis Federation president Marc Gingell Littlejohn presented the trophies to the winners.